Tuesday, 23 August 2011

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated that Turkey aim to reach a total amount of $500 million donations in aid for Somalia.

Speaking at an iftar event on Sunday, Erdogan said: “At the Istanbul session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) last week, we secured £350 million, almost half of which was Turkey’s contribution alone. We are trying to raise it to £500 million, which is needed urgently by Somalis.”

Erdogan has recently just returned to Turkey following a visit to refugee camps in Somalia to see the situation and urge for more donations from the public. It has been estimated that Turkey has so far managed to collect $137 million through campaigns started by the Turkish Prime Ministry.

According to the United Nations, more than 3 million people are currently facing death and hunger in Somalia alone. The country is currently in the middle of the worst drought it has experienced for more than 60 years. Turkey has initiated many different strategies to send aid to Somalia and the Turkish Red Crescent is currently situated in Somalia in the process of setting up tents to accommodate people in the area.

Turkey has recently announced new plans and ideas to help Somalia in their time of need. A team of 20 volunteering Turkish doctors have recently arrived in Turkey to provide medical help while the Turkish military have also stated that they are readying a cargo ship of aid supplies to set sail for Somalia.